Gaza deaths top 24,100 as brutal war drags on
Published: 04:01 PM,Jan 15,2024 | EDITED : 08:01 PM,Jan 15,2024
A picture shows a makeshift camp for displaced Palestinians west of Rafah who fled Israeli strikes. — AFP
GAZA: Health officials in Gaza reported on Monday more than 24,100 deaths in the war with Israel which has sent shockwaves across the region, as the fighting passed the grim 100-day milestone.
The health ministry in Gaza, reported more than 60 'martyrs' and dozens more wounded overnight, in what the strip's media office described as 'intense' Israeli bombardment across Gaza.
The government media office said two hospitals, a girls' school and 'dozens' of homes were hit overnight.
Hospitals in Gaza have been hit repeatedly since the war erupted, and the World Health Organization (WHO) says most of them are no longer functioning.
The Israeli military accuses Palestinian groups of operating out of civilian facilities or from tunnels under them, a charge they deny.
The latest strikes hit the southern cities of Khan Yunis and Rafah, as well as areas around Gaza City, the media office said.
The army said its forces had struck 'two loading weapons into a vehicle' in Khan Yunis, southern Gaza's main city, and raided 'a command centre' there and seized weapons.
The UN says more than three months of fighting have displaced roughly 85 percent of the territory's population, crowded into shelters and struggling to get food, water, fuel and medical care.
'There's no food, no water, no heating. We are dying from the cold,' said Mohammad Kahil, displaced from northern Gaza to Rafah, on the southern border with Egypt.
Israel launched a relentless military campaign that has killed at least 24,100 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the territory's health ministry.
WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has said people in Gaza were 'living in hell', echoing earlier UN warnings of a fast-approaching famine.
In a joint statement, the WHO, World Food Programme (WFP) and UNICEF said 'a fundamental step change in the flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza is urgently needed'.
They called for 'safer, faster' supply routes to be opened, warning that the current levels of aid 'fall far short of what is needed to prevent a deadly combination of hunger, malnutrition and disease'.
The WFP said an aid convoy brought food to the territory's north on Thursday, the first such delivery since a one-week truce ended on December 1.
Cindy McCain, the UN agency's director, said: 'People in Gaza risk dying of hunger just miles from trucks filled with food. Every hour puts countless lives at risk.'
Israel has faced international pressure over surging civilian casualties in Gaza, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is under intense domestic pressure to account for political and security failings surrounding the October 7 attacks.
On the war's 100th day on Sunday, hundreds of Israelis gathered in Tel Aviv for events urging action to rescue the remaining captives. — AFP
The health ministry in Gaza, reported more than 60 'martyrs' and dozens more wounded overnight, in what the strip's media office described as 'intense' Israeli bombardment across Gaza.
The government media office said two hospitals, a girls' school and 'dozens' of homes were hit overnight.
Hospitals in Gaza have been hit repeatedly since the war erupted, and the World Health Organization (WHO) says most of them are no longer functioning.
The Israeli military accuses Palestinian groups of operating out of civilian facilities or from tunnels under them, a charge they deny.
The latest strikes hit the southern cities of Khan Yunis and Rafah, as well as areas around Gaza City, the media office said.
The army said its forces had struck 'two loading weapons into a vehicle' in Khan Yunis, southern Gaza's main city, and raided 'a command centre' there and seized weapons.
The UN says more than three months of fighting have displaced roughly 85 percent of the territory's population, crowded into shelters and struggling to get food, water, fuel and medical care.
'There's no food, no water, no heating. We are dying from the cold,' said Mohammad Kahil, displaced from northern Gaza to Rafah, on the southern border with Egypt.
Israel launched a relentless military campaign that has killed at least 24,100 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the territory's health ministry.
WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has said people in Gaza were 'living in hell', echoing earlier UN warnings of a fast-approaching famine.
In a joint statement, the WHO, World Food Programme (WFP) and UNICEF said 'a fundamental step change in the flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza is urgently needed'.
They called for 'safer, faster' supply routes to be opened, warning that the current levels of aid 'fall far short of what is needed to prevent a deadly combination of hunger, malnutrition and disease'.
The WFP said an aid convoy brought food to the territory's north on Thursday, the first such delivery since a one-week truce ended on December 1.
Cindy McCain, the UN agency's director, said: 'People in Gaza risk dying of hunger just miles from trucks filled with food. Every hour puts countless lives at risk.'
Israel has faced international pressure over surging civilian casualties in Gaza, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is under intense domestic pressure to account for political and security failings surrounding the October 7 attacks.
On the war's 100th day on Sunday, hundreds of Israelis gathered in Tel Aviv for events urging action to rescue the remaining captives. — AFP